The official West Point Alumni Association has cancelled an awards ceremony for actor Tom Hanks on the day Donald Trump changed the name of the Department of Defense back to the Department of War.

The US President on Saturday signed an executive order to revert the Department of Defense to the title it held until after World War II, when officials sought to emphasise the Pentagon's role in preventing conflict.

Trump authorised Department of War and Secretary of War as secondary titles to the main titles Department of Defense and Secretary of Defense, sidestepping the need for congressional approval for the change.

The 78-year-old republican said the rebranding comes as the Defense name was "woke" and the US needed to shift focus to winning wars.

That day, West Point Association of Grad

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